Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

Porto vs Chelsea player ratings: Willian a bright spark but Branislav Ivanovic and Cesc Fabregas disappoint

How did we rate each player during the 2-1 defeat?

Vaishali Bhardwaj

Tuesday 29 September 2015 22:44 BST

A chaotic defensive performance made it a night to forget for Chelsea (Getty Images)

Jose Mourinho's miserable start to the season continued on Tuesday night as his Chelsea side fell to a defeat at the hands of his former club.

Goals from Andre Andre and Maicon proved enough to keep the three points in Portugal but, on a night of reckless and disorganised, so untypical of Mourinho teams, the defecit could have been greater.

Asmir Begovic was the away side's stand-out performer, regularly proving himself equal to the potshots that rained down on his goal in the second half. Julen Lopetegui's home side could smell blood, what with chaotic defensive performance from Branislav Ivanovic and Gary Cahill in particular.

Going forward, Chelsea were too often limp and lifeless. Once again, with the onus on him to create chances, Cesc Fabregas put in an awkward performance. The only bright spark was Willian, whose wonderful free-kick on the stroke of half-time brought his side level

Eden Hazard and Nemanja Matic were left on the bench while Radamel Falcao, Oscar and Loic Remy did not appear in the matchday squad. Mouirnho's gamble, however, did not pay off.

Open the gallery below to see how The Independent rated each of Chelsea's players...

Porto 2 Chelsea 1 player ratings

Show all 11

1/11Porto 2 Chelsea 1 player ratings

Porto 2 Chelsea 1 player ratings

Asmir Begovic: 8 out of 10

Was Chelsea’s best player on the pitch. The goalkeeper made several reflex saves to deny the likes of Aboubakar and Brahimi throughout the game and, despite his one-handed stop to keep out Brahimi’s first-half effort, he could do nothing to stop Andre opening the scoring.

Porto 2 Chelsea 1 player ratings

Branislav Ivanovic: 4 out of 10

After failing to clear an early Porto effort, the full-back – acting as captain in John Terry’s absence – allowed Brahimi to dribble past him all too easily seconds before the opener. Although he made a vital block to deny the Porto midfielder in the second half, Ivanovic should have equalised but headed Willian’s corner wide. Another under-par performance from the right-back.

Getty Images

Porto 2 Chelsea 1 player ratings

Gary Cahill: 4 out of 10

Failed to shepherd his back line well enough during the set piece that Maicon made it 2-1 from, and should have done better to mark the Porto defender at the same time. Was often dragged out of position and didn’t show the leadership skills that were sorely needed to control the likes of Aboubakar.

Getty Images

Porto 2 Chelsea 1 player ratings

Kurt Zouma: 5 out of 10

Failed to put in the strong and dominating displays he has shown in the past and looked uncomfortable as he and Cahill were too often run past by Aboubakar and Brahimi. Communication between the pair is appearing to be an issue.

Getty Images

Porto 2 Chelsea 1 player ratings

Cesar Azpilicueta: 6 out of 10

Defended well early on and literally put his body on the line to keep out an early shot, but did not see Andre advancing for the opener. Was then shown a yellow card for pulling the Porto winger back and began to lose the battle to control him in the second half.

Getty Images

Porto 2 Chelsea 1 player ratings

John Obi Mikel: 5 out of 10

Looked good in the early stages of the game, but failed to really control Brahimi in the middle of the park, which led to the Porto man running riot and being involved in the opening goal. Was replaced by Hazard in the second half.

Getty Images

Porto 2 Chelsea 1 player ratings

Cesc Fabregas: 4 out of 10

Tested Casillas with a long-range shot in the sixth minute that proved to be one of Chelsea’s best chances early on, but the Spaniard failed to once again impress when needed to create attacks.

2015 Getty Images

Porto 2 Chelsea 1 player ratings

Ramires: 6 out of 10

Was deployed on the right and his inclusion in the starting XI paid off when the Brazilian won the free-kick that Willian scored from. However, he was later out-muscled by Maicon, which allowed the Porto captain to seal the win. Was taken off in the 70th minute for Hazard.

Getty Images

Porto 2 Chelsea 1 player ratings

Willian: 8 out of 10

Worked hard in midfield and, on more than one occasion, the Brazilian tracked back to help defend. He capped off a good display with a brilliant free-kick that restored parity for the visitors.

Getty Images

Porto 2 Chelsea 1 player ratings

Pedro: 4 out of 10

Mourinho started the Spain international on the left after utilising him on the right following his summer move to the club and, aside from his powerful shot that Casillas saved in the 13th minute, Pedro disappointed. He failed to provide the service that Costa desperately needed and was taken off in the second half.

Getty Images

Porto 2 Chelsea 1 player ratings

Diego Costa: 6 out of 10

Despite missing Chelsea’s last two games, the striker was lively and got past Maxi Pereira time and time again in the first period. He was unlucky not to have scored when his powerful curling shot hit the bar in the second half, but the main issue for Costa was that he was left isolated too often – which forced him to drop deep to find the ball. Should have been awarded a penalty when his shot ricocheted off Marcano’s arm in the area with minutes of the game left.

Getty Images

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies